Track and wheel truck for rolling door



Nov. 24, 1964 J. FRUEH TRACK AND WHEEL TRUCK FOR ROLLING DOOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 21, 1962 J. J. FRUEH 3,157,908

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Jomv J Pkz/EH Arm/war Nov. 24, 1964 TRACK AND WHEEL TRUCK FOR ROLLING DOOR Filed Nov. 21, 1962 United States Patent 3,157,908 TRAQK AND WHEEL TRUQK FGR RGLHNKE 898R John J. Frueh, 8% W. 167th St, Gardenia, Qaiif. Filed Nov. 21, 1962, Ser. No. 239,154 4 (Ilaims. ll. 1695) This invention relates to dooror lock-activating constructions and particularly to such assemblies which activate an operating spindle (which spans or overlies the height or width of a door), which spindle is rotatable a quarter turn by means of a hand lever (transversely projecting from the spindle intermediate its ends) so as to dispose the opposite ends of the spindle in closed or open positions in relation to the adjacent door frame. The outer ends of the turning spindle may either help to seat and unseat a door, or alternately may lock and unlock a seated door depending upon the type of door which carries the spindle.

Thus, by one construction, rotation of the spindle shifts an aperture-aligned, sliding door into and out of closure position; such operation is effected when the door is edg suspended along its upper (and lower) margin for horizontal movement into and out of a vertical frame or aperture. The present invention also provides a novel suspension assembly (comprising track and roller means) for sliding doors, which suspension is particularly adapted for use with the described operating assembly.

The present door and lock construction is particularly adapted for closure of cargo carriers such as railway cars and highway trucks, which heavy-duty doors are built with considerable thickness containing insulating material. One prominent feature of my construction makes it impossible to accidently confine a person inside such a chamber even when the seated door is locked by an external padlock, such door being openable by a person from inside without disturbing the padlock and then being capable of being manually returnable to its locked condition simply by being pushed shut. This provides an escape door for a refrigeration chamber.

There is also provided a new track and roller construction for sliding doors, particularly associable with the present operating spindle, whereby both the roller track and door (when closed) are disposed fiush with the outer face of the apertured wall.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent as the description proceeds, having particular reference to the drawings which illustrate presently preferred embodiments of the invention wherein FIG. 1 is an elevational view of the operating assembly as seen from the outer face of a door, with the oper ating lever and retainer bar alternately indicated also in broken lines in their depressed or unlatched position;

FIG. 2 is a sectional View at right angles to FIG. 1 along the line 22 and particularly showing in position for locking, the slide plate with its padlock eye;

FIG. 3 is an axial section through the latch bolt, taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the assembly, the spindle appearing in section;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view along the line 5-5 of FIG. 1, the elements within the channel of the operating assembly appearing in top plan, and the position of the operating lever when outswung and dropped parallel to the door and spindle, appearing in broken lines;

FIG. 6 is an external elevational view of a sliding door or closure panel fitted with the foregoing operating assembly and with track and roller means for functionally mounting both adjacent a wall aperture according to the present invention, with portions of the door-facing and the central suspension head broken away;

FIG. 7 is a transverse, vertical sectional view through the mounted door and door frame as viewed along the line 77 of FIG. 6 and particularly showing the attachment of the roller tracks, Wheel truck and pivotal suspension head;

FIG. 8 is a horizontal section taken along the line 8-8, particularly showing in top plan the upper horizontal roller, and with the suspension head and door in outswung position relative to the wheel truck, with a portion of the latter sectioned at a lower level to show its vertical roller;

FIG. 9 is a similar view to the preceding, partly in top plan and partly in horizontal section, with the suspension head inswung so as to locate the sliding door in closed position;

FIGURES 10, 11, 12 are views similar to the respective three preceding views but showing -a modification wherein the roller track is inset along the top of the doorframe and thus disposed flush with the outer wall, and the rotary suspension head is accordingly attached to the door at a different location than the prior form, whereby the closed door is again disposed flush with the adjacent wall.

When the present construction is used with sliding doors such as are employed on cargo carriers, the sliding door mechanism shown in my US. Patent 2,532,491 is well suited. When incorporated With that particular track and roller suspension, the present operating assembly is added to the control stem 4 along the outer face of the door so as to make possible the manual, lever rotation of the central, upright stem or operating spindle between alternate positions a quarter turn apart, thus providing both an operating lever-handle and external locking means. With such assembly, a person accidently locked inside by an external padlock, can readily open the door from within. This is in marked contrast to some escape doors which require the trapped occupant to detach the lock-mounting bolts from inside so that the external lock drops off the door before it can be opened.- By my construction (detailed below) the locking means are at no time rendered inoperative, but as soon as the occupant walks out, the door can be immediately returned to its locked position with the padlock still undisturbed.

Still another form of track and roller suspension for such sliding doors is here detailed in association with my lock activating assembly. The door C is connected along its upper margin to (at least two) rotatable stems 2 inserted vertically into the body of the door from its upper, horizontal edge 25, with their upper ends fixed to respective U-shaped heads 8. The U-heads have their parallel arms 8a, directed generally horizontally, with the vertical connection 81) disposed outward from the door opening B or its surrounding frame A. The lower arms 8a of the U-heads are fixed to the stems 2 and the upper arm 8c carries a lateral extension 8d which is rotatable about a terminally journalled, upright pin 11, which forms part of the roller means and is spaced vertically above and laterally oifset from the stem 2. As explained hereinafter, the stem 2 by such mounting is disposed to move in a are about the pin.

A tubular structure 1, the hollow interior of which forms a (generally straight) track, is mounted (as by fastening elements 5) along the outer face of a Wall W immediately above a doorway B, and longitudinally extending therefrom a minimum distance approximating the Width of the doorway. The tube structure 1 is approximately rectangular in section, with the outer, vertical surface formed by upper 6 and lower '7 face flanges, spaced vertically apart (and transversely staggered) to define a longitudinal slot 18 along the length of the tube and through which opening the extension arms 8d are inserted. The upper flange may be outturned to form a projecting guard lip 3. Within the tube 1, the transverse span or space across the upper portion (that is, adjacent the upper flange 6) is greater than the parallel distance across the floor 21 of the track (FIGS. 7 and Accordingly there are formed two tracks, upper T and lower T of dilferent widths, each of which receives a roller of a wheel truck (the axes of the two connected rollers being respectively vertical in T and horizontal in T Each extension arm 8d is attached to a roller assembly or wheel truck 10 which is movable lengthwise within the tube 1, each suspension head 8 and connected wheel truck 10 together forming a suspension-roller unit. At least two such units dependently carry a door C, being spaced apart (horizontally) along its upper edge and mutually connected by a generally rectangular, inverted- U-shaped, channel member 12 which is slidingly disposed lengthwise in the tube 1. The channel 12 is spaced vertically from both the top and bottom of the track, as well as spaced forward from the rear face 9, and generally in loose, sliding registration with the lower vertical flange 7. Each wheel truck 10 includes a vertical roller 19 mounted between the longitudinal sides of the slide channel 12 on a transverse axle 20, the roller extending below the lower edge of the slide channel in rolling registration with the track floor 21. Fixedly mounted within the chanel 12 and projecting upward through the apertured crosswall 22 is a cylindrical pin 11 which is pivotally embraced by the inner end of suspension arm 3d (immediately above the crosswall 22) and above which is rotatably disposed a fiatsided, horizontal roller 23 in rolling registration with the rear wall 9 and upper flange 6.

It will be observed that the vertical midplane bisecting the sliding channel 12, also bisects both rollers 19, 23, the axes of the pair of rollers being perpendicular to each other and both being transverse to the longitudinal axis of the channel 12 and its embracing track. Also, the pivotal attachment of the am 801 to the pivot pin 11 is at one end of the wheel truck, while the door stem 2 attachment (when the door is seated) is adjacent the other end, and the operating lever 42 extends further in the same direction; this successive positioning provides elfective leverage in seating and unseating the door by rotating the stems 2 a quarter turn. In other words, for use with a slide track which extends to the left of a door opening B (FIG. 6), the pivot pin 11 would be at the left end of each truck 10, the attachment of each stem 2 or operating spindle 4 to the right thereof, and the operating lever 42 projecting farther to the right. Alternately, for use with a slide track extending to the right of a door opening, the foregoing sequence would be reversed.

A housing frame F for the present operating assembly is secured in a generally horizontal position along the outer face of the sliding panel or door C, conveniently being sunk therein so as to be substantially flush with the external surface. Upper and lower, marginal facing strips 28, 29 are disposed to closely overlie the outer skin 30 of the door body, being joined to an upright rear wall 32 of the frame, by generally mutually parallel and horizontally disposed walls 34, 36, vertically separated to form an outwardly-open channel 35.

The operating spindle or central control stem 4 medially overlies or may be embedded within the body of the door C, and its intermediate section rotatably traverses the horizontal channel wals 34, 36, adjacent an end of the frame F. The portion of its length which is within the channel 35 carries a stop lug 38 placed to contact an abutment 39 which projects from the rear wall 32, so as thus to limit rotation of the spindle 4 approximately to 90 (FIG. 5).

Within the upper portion of the open-face channel 35, a short, flat-sided projection 40 fixedly extends radially outward from the spindle 4, generally axially (i.e. vertically) aligned therewith and (when within the channel 35) disposable in juxtaposition with the rear wall 32 of the frame F. An elongated, operating lever 42 is formed by a juxtaposed pair of metal straps a and b welded together along an intermediate distance and terminally bent apart to form a bifurcate end 43; the latter loosely embraces the opposing fiat sides of the radial projection 40, being connected thereto by a transverse pivot 44. The outer or unattached end of the lever has one strap a outwardly ofiset to form a handle 45 which thus overlies the facing skin 30 of the door C beyond the channel 35. The rear strap [1 is curved forward at 47 so as (in conjunction with the curvature 46) to form an upward-opening bolt socket 48. A short spacer insert 50 ensures that the forward end of 47 (when the lever 42 is latched or seated) will be aligned with the facing flanges 28, 29 of the frame F. At the other end of the lever 42, a vertical pair of rivet pins 0 and d limit the pivotal movement of the lever (when outswung from the channel 35) to approximately 90 by alternate abutment with projection 40.

Disposed generally parallel to the seated lever 42 within the channel 35 and immediately beneath and in longitudinal abutment with its lower edge, is an elongated retainer bar 52 of inverted trough shape and medially pivoted from beneath atop a compression spring 55. The latter thus normally urges the bar 52 to hold the upper edge of the lever 42 against the underface of the channel wall 34. The fixed end 56 of the coil is secured to the lower channel wall 36, against which the peripheral, vertical wall 54 of the bar 52 may be forced by compression of the spring 55 caused by pivotal depression of the lever 42 against the slide face 53. One end of the latter is apertured at 68 to receive the spindle 4 loosely therethrough, while its rear Wall 51 has a slide tongue 57 (FIG. 3) formed on its opposite end and inserted in a slot or slideway 58 formed by a vertical boss pressed forward 59 from the channel wall. The movable bar 52 is thus restrained against both longitudinal and transverse displacement from the channel 35.

The retainer bar 52 has its upper, slide face 53 cut out or recessed 62 transversely outward and generally radial to the spindle to form an anchoring groove for the lower edge of the projection 40 when turned perpendicularly to the channel 35. The retainer bar 52 can thus act as a lever whose fulcrum is provided by the central spring 55, so that the bar can be pivoted or tilted lengthwise toward either end thereof; in addition, it can be fulcrummed from the spindle end 60, compressing the spring 55) by depression of the overlying lever 42 within the channel 35 as indicated by broken lines, FIG. 1. In the latter operation, a slide plate 64 dependent from the lower edge of the right end of wall 54 is thereby moved lengthwise through a corresponding opening of the bottom channel wall 36 (FIGS. 23). The slide plate 64 is formed with a padlock eye 66 which is normally disposed above the channel wall 36 (and thus externally accessible) so that by insertion of the shackle of a padlock 68 or similar keeper through the eye 66, depression of this end of the retainer bar 52 is blocked, and the overlying operating lever 42 is held within the channel (by engagement with the bolt '72) with the upper edge of the lever in longitudinal registration with the underface of the upper channel wall 34. Alternately, when the spindle 4 and lever 42 are rotated a quarter turn, bringing the lever out of the channel 35 and completely off of the slide face 53 of the retainer bar 52, the latter (by the spring 55) at its spindle end moves up behind the outswung lever 42 to engage the lower edge of projection 49 in the groove 62. Thus, in effect, the operating lever 42 can be selectively locked in two extreme positions apart. Upon raising the downhung lever 42, its (bifurcate) butt end 41 depresses the slide face 53, freeing projection 40.

Upstanding from the top face of the upper channel wall 34 (i.e. within the body of the door C) is an open ended, tubular housing '70, which slidingly retains a lock' bolt 72 which may have its lower, engaging end beveled '73 to form a latch. The latch end 73 projects through an aperture 74 in the channel wall 34 (FIG. 3) in line with the vertical socket 48 formed in the operating lever 42, being urged downward by a tension spring 76 disposed about the bolt stem 71 within the housing 70. The stem 71 is diametrically slit downward partway from the top, across which slot 75 is disposed an anchor pin 78 which completely traverses the housing tube 76 and internally bears against the upper end of the coil spring 76. Accordingly, while the bolt 72 remains in its downprojected or locking position, the lever 42 can be disengaged therefrom (in the absence of the padlock 68), by depression of the lever (pivoted at 44) acting within the channel 35 and against the spring-tensioned retainer bar 52 until the socket 48 is clear of the projected bolt 72. The lever 42 can then be swung out of the channel 35, free of the slide face 53, and dropped to hang parallel with the spindle 4 (anchored by the groove 62). This same outward quarter-turn of the spindle 4 likewise rotates each extension ann 8d from its inserted position along the slot 18 of the overhead track, thus unseating the door C from the opening B. With the lever 42 locked (by the groove 62) in its downswung position, the door can then be rolled lengthwise along the track without danger that pressure against the face of the door would start the heads 8 to turn back toward door seated position (which when the door was unaligned with its doorway B, would cause it to jamb against the wall area below the track). A single head 16 (similar to 8) and lone roller 17 may align the door with lower track 13.

Lamrally displaced from'the bolt housing 70 opposite the central control spindle 4, is an upstanding post 80 with a top, transverse surface 82 which serves as a fulcrum for the end of a release lever 84- (within the body of the door C). The other end 86 of the lever is connected to an ascending, flexible cable 83 which after passing through an eyelet 90 of a cross brace 92 of the door, terminally hangs down along the inner face of the door to provide a pullcord 89 by means of which a person may raise the bolt 72 and hence unlatch the door from inside, even while the external padlock 68 remains in place. Hinged connection of the bolt '72 and release lever 34 is by the pivot pin 85. When the weight of the lever 84 provides enough down-thrust, the spring 76 may be omitted.

Since all of the longitudinally aligned wheel trucks 10 (i.e. above an individual sliding door C) are connected by the slide channel 12 within the track 1, when a pair of such suspension-roller units (attached to stems 2) have the operating spindle 4 disposed between them (as in FIGURE 6), the top of the spindle need not also be attached to a (third) roller assembly, but the end of its suspension arm 8d which is inserted through the slot 13 may simply be pivoted to the cross wall 22 atop the slide channel 12. Thus the weight of the door C is carried on the pair of suspension-roller units which are attached to the short stems 2, but arcuate movement of the extension arm 8d of the operating spindle 4 simultaneously arcs the corresponding arms (8d) of each such channel-IZ-connected roller assembly.

It will be apparent from a comparison of FIGURES 7, 8, 9 with FIGURES 10, 11, 12 that'the structural difierence between the first form (wherein the track 1 is added to the outer face of the wall W), and the sec ond form (wherein the track is set in an edge recess 26) is that in the latter case the lower U-arm 80. is of shorter length (approximately equal to that of the upper arm 80) so that when the door is closed the stem 2 is disposed in the same vertical plane as the pivot pin 11. In both cases, the (closed) door C is disposed flush with the wall W; but in the second case the outer face of the track 1 is also flush with both. Thus there is no projecting structure (as in the first case) which might be sheared otf by a foreign object sweeping along the external face of the wall W.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes of construction and operation may be made with in the inventive concept without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and therefore this disclosure is not to be limited to the precise details shown in the drawings and particularly described, but the claims should be accorded the full scope of recognized equivalents in their distinctions from the prior art.

I claim:

1. In operative combination: a tubular structure forming an internal track therealong, having means for disposing the ructure generally horizontally above and longitudinally extending beyond the upper edge of a doorway for operative suspension and movement of a slidable door therealong, said internai track being formed with a longitudinally open slot extending along one side thereof; at least two suspension-roller units spaced apart along the track in position jointly to suspend a sliding door dependently held between them, each unit comprising a wheel truck and a U-shaped head disposed with its arms spaced vertically apart, one of said arms of each head being inserted through said longitudinal slot of the tube in pivotal connection with said respective wheel truck, and said other arm being disposed outside the track and fixed to a rotatable stem adapted to support the edge of a sliding door; a generally U-shaped channel connecting said units within the tubular structure and longitudinally slidable along said track jointly with the connected units, the Wheel truck of each unit including one roller held partly within said open slidable channel and rotatable along the track on an axis transverse thereto, and a second roller disposed outside the slidable channel and rotatable along the track on an axis transverse to the axis of said first roller, the pivotal connection or" each inserted U-arm of the respective suspension roller unit, to said wheel truck being intermediate said two rollers and said inserted U-arm being movable approximately by joint rotation of said stem, thereby to seat and unseat a sliding door which may be dependently held by and between a pair of such stems and U-shaped heads spaced apart along said channel, which channel is longitudinally slidable along said track of the tubular structure with rotation of said rollers.

2. For combination with a tubular structure forming an internal track therealong and formed with a longitudinally extending, open slot for reception of a transversely disposed pair of suspension arms which are jointly movable therealong: a pair of suspension-roller units spaced apart along the track, each unit comprising a wheel truck carrying two rollers each in rolling registration with said track and having their respective axes disposed substantially perpendicular to each other, and a suspension arm extending outward from each wheel truck through said longitudinal slot with one end pivotally secured to the respective wheel truck for pivotal movement along the direction of the slot, the outer ends of the suspension arms of the two units thus being adapted to be attached jointly to an object such as a door disposed generally parallel to the track for movement of the object along the track by movement of the suspensionroller units, and for displacement toward and away from the track by pivotal movement of said suspension arms; and a channel member connecting together the pair of suspension-roller units within the tubular structure, said member being longitudinally slidable along said track jointly with said units.

3. The combination of the preceding claim 2 wherein each wheel truck is formed with one of said rollers disposed above and the other below said channel member, which charmel member is generally U-shaped, the rollers being spaced apart along the channel, one of said rollers being loosely embraced by longitudinal sides of said channel member, the other roller being disposed generally parallel to the crosswall of said member, with the pivoted end of said suspension arm being slidably disposed between said crosswall and said last roller, and a pivot pin jointly traversing said last roller, said pivoted end of the suspension arm and said crosswall, and extending between said longitudinal sides of the channel and forming lateral support thereof.

4. In operative combination: a tubular structure fora ing an internal track therealong, having attachment means for disposing the structure generally horizontally above and longitudinally extending beyond the upper edge of a doorway for operative suspension and movement of a slidable door therealong, said internal track being substantially rectangular in cross section and formed with a longitudinally open slot extending medially along one upright side so as to separate upper and lower, upright flanges which constitute said side; at least two suspensionroller units spaced apart along the track in position jointly to suspend a sliding door dependently held between them, each unit comprising a wheel truck and a U-shaped head disposed with its arms spaced vertically apart, one of said arms of each head being inserted through said longitudinal slot in pivotal connection with the respective wheel truck, and said other arm being disposed beneath the track and fixed to a rotatable stem adapted to support the upper margin of a sliding door; a generally U-shaped channel connecting said units within the tubular structure and longitudinally slidable along said track jointly with the connected units, the wheel truck of each unit including one roller held partly within said open slidable channel and rotatable along the track on an axis transverse thereto, and a second roller disposed outside the slidable channel and rotatable along the track on an 30 axis transverse to the axis of said first roller, and an upstanding, generally cylindrical pin having a diameter approximating the inner width of the channel and having one end portion disposed supportingly therein with its opposite end portion projecting through an aperture of the channel and through said second roller to form an axle for said second roller and also providing the pivotal connection for the said inserted arm of each suspensionroller unit which arm is disposed intermediate the second roller and the crosswall of the U-shaped slidable channel, whereby each said U-shaped head and connected stem are jointly rotatable approximately 90 in a generally horizontal plane to seat and unseat a sliding door from the doorway, which door may be dependently held by and between a pair of such stems and U-shaped heads spaced apart along said channel, which channel is longitudinally slidable along said track of the tubular structure with rotation of said rollers.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 13,931 6/15 Trabue 16-95 989,646 4/11 Rupp 16-95 1,186,038 6/16 Ramsey et al. 292-218 1,256,578 2/18 Kummer 16-104 1,294,589 2/19 Wolf: 1695 1,469,331 10/23 Gillig et al 16-96 2,568,058 9/51 Dath 292218 X 2,741,807 4/56 Powers 2023 2,807,058 9/57 Morgan 16-95 X 3,020,603 2/62 Soddy 2023 DONLEY J. STOCKING, Primary Examiner.

HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Examiner. 

1. IN OPERATIVE COMBINATION: A TUBULAR STRUCTURE FORMING A INTERNAL TRACK THEREALONG, HAVING MEANS FOR DISPOSING THE STRUCTURE GENERALLY HORIZONTALLY ABOVE AND LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING BEYOND THE UPPER EDGE OF A DOORWAY FOR OPERATIVE SUSPENSION AND MOVEMENT OF A SLIDABLE DOOR THEREALONG, SAID INTERNAL TRACK BEING FORMED WITH A LONGITUDINALLY OPEN SLOT EXTENDING ALONG ONE SIDE THEREOF; AT LEAST TWO SUSPENSION-ROLLER UNITS SPACED APART ALONG THE TRACK IN POSITION JOINTLY TO SUSPEND A SLIDING DOOR DEPENDENTLY HELD BETWEEN THEM, EACH UNIT COMPRISING A WHEEL TRUCK AND A U-SHAPED HEAD DISPOSED WITH ITS ARMS SPACED VERTICALLY APART, ONE OF SAID ARMS OF EACH HEAD BEING INSERTED THROUGH SAID LONGITUDINAL SLOT OF THE TUBE IN PIVOTAL CONNECTION WITH SAID RESPECTIVE WHEEL TRUCK, AND SAID OTHER ARM BEING DISPOSED OUTSIDE THE TRACK AND FIXED TO A ROTATABLE STEM ADAPTED TO SUPPORT THE EDGE OF A SLIDING DOOR; A GENERALLY U-SHAPED CHANNEL CONNECTING SAID UNITS WITHIN THE TUBULAR STRUCTURE AND LONGITUDINALLY SLIDABLE ALONG SAID TRACK JOINTLY WITH THE CONNECTED UNITS, THE WHEEL TRUCK OF EACH UNIT INCLUDING ONE ROLLER HELD PARTLY WITHIN SAID OPEN SLIDABLE CHANNEL AND ROTATABLE ALONG THE TRACK ON AN AXIS TRANSVERSE THERETO, AND A SECOND ROLLER DISPOSED OUTSIDE THE SLIDABLE CHANNEL AND ROTATABLE ALONG THE TRACK ON AN AXIS TRANSVERSE TO THE AXIS OF SAID FIRST ROLLER, THE PIVOTAL CONNECTION OF EACH INSERTED U-ARM OF THE RESPECTIVE SUSPENSION ROLLER UNIT, TO SAID WHEEL TRUCK BEING INTERMEDIATE SAID TWO ROLLERS AND SAID INSERTED U-ARM BEING MOVABLE APPROXIMATELY 90* BY JOINT ROTATION OF SAID STEM, THEREBY TO SEAT AND UNSEAT A SLIDING DOOR WHICH MAY BE DEPENDENTLY HELD BY AND BETWEEN A PAIR OF SUCH STEMS AND U-SHAPED HEADS SPACED APART ALONG SAID CHANNEL WHICH CHANNEL IS LONGITUDINALLY SLIDABLE ALONG SAID TRACK OF THE TUBULAR STRUCTURE WITH ROTATION OF SAID ROLLERS. 